Sam Bee To Hillary Clinton: ‘It Should Have Been You’

NEW YORK ― Sam Bee is one funny lady. And sometimes her comedic timing is so good that its underlying earnestness punches you right in the gut. During her introductory remarks for Hillary Clinton on Thursday night at Tina Brown’s Women in the World Summit, she elicited laughs, cheers and some tears.

“I’m surprised that Secretary Clinton was available to speak tonight,” Bee said after walking out on stage to huge applause. “I assumed by now Hermione would have returned to her rightful home at Hogwarts, where she’s rumored to be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor ― at least we’re all hoping.”

Bee expressed how hard it was to think of what to say to Secretary Clinton, given all that has happened since November 8th.

“I should be lauding Hillary for making time to be here despite her busy schedule as president,” she said. “I should be talking about how she didn’t just shake Angela Merkel’s hand, but hugged her. Instead, Mr. Trump is nearing his 100th day in office. I assume he’ll mark it the same way all schoolchildren do ― by gluing 100 pieces of macaroni to a health care bill.”

In the latter part of her remarks, Bee addressed her thoughts directly to Clinton:

“I’m only gonna say this once, though you deserve to hear it 100 times. It should have been you.”

Drew Angerer via Getty Images

Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hugs Samantha Bee before an interview with Nicholas Kristof during the Women in the World Summit at Lincoln Center, April 6, 2017.

Bee continued, mapping out what might have been:

And yes, you would’ve made mistakes. And you would’ve been attacked for doing things that now seem so inconsequential. I mean for god’s sake, I was supposed to talk about you on my show for the next four years. And now I’m saddled with that pint of flat orange Fanta, who gives me more material than I would ever want.

I thought ― and I feared ― that you being elected would unleash a wave of misogyny in the U.S., but we’ve seen that that happened anyway.

Bee ended her introduction on an optimistic note, looking toward a future she hopes we will one day reach.

“We may not know what the future holds, but I’m hopeful that there is one,” she said. “And I do believe it exists in the young women and men who live in this new unexpected reality, who see your legacy, Hillary, and work to build upon it.”